7.10 Nuclear Weapons

I feel it would be irresponsible for me as your teacher to cover a unit on nuclear chemistry and not dedicate at least one assignment to the issue of nuclear weapons. In the seventy years since their first development, nuclear bombs have served as the most horrific example of what science and technology can lead to. Many will argue that they saved countless lives by bringing a quick end to WWII. The devastation they brought about, however, and the continued legacy of fear and unrest that they continue to instill in the entire world's population are hard to reconcile. There are very few people on the planet who would argue that the world would not be a much better place without the existence of nuclear weapons. And yet, there they are...

For this assignment, you will be using three sources:

First go to: http://phet.colorado.edu/en/simulation/nuclear-fission

Click on Run Now (You will need Java to run this). Then just experiment around, first with the One Nucleus Tab at the top, then with the Chain Reaction Tab, adjusting the number of U-235's and U-238's and see the difference between a chain reaction that peters out and one that escalates. Keep this in mind when the next web site addresses the issue of critical mass.

You will then be reading this article: http://science.howstuffworks.com/nuclear-bomb.htm

and then this one http://history1900s.about.com/od/worldwarii/a/hiroshima.htm

The first consists of nine short pages, some animations and a LOT of information. The second site is two pages, but you only need to read the first one. The second is quite graphic and disturbing, so I am not requiring it.

There will be ten questions: one from each page. Some of the information is quite upsetting, but for that I make no apologies. It is what it is.

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